


Lone Moon - Claude

by soultyghost



Series: Crying, Laughing, and Blazing Ahead [4]
Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Drabble, F/M, Goodbyes, No Spoilers, Post-Game
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-02
Updated: 2020-02-02
Packaged: 2021-03-12 15:40:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 589
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22525876
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/soultyghost/pseuds/soultyghost
Summary: Some months after the war ends and efforts in rebuilding Fodlan are well underway, Claude looks for Ingrid.
Relationships: Ingrid Brandl Galatea/Claude von Riegan
Series: Crying, Laughing, and Blazing Ahead [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1585690
Comments: 6
Kudos: 12
Collections: Those Who Drabble in the Dark





	Lone Moon - Claude

**Author's Note:**

> Set post-game in CLAB AU. No spoilers so you can read it without any knowledge of the end-game or CLAB.

Claude found Ingrid exactly where he expected her to be: in front of a burial mound at the edges of the Sealed Forest. Without her bloodstained armor and with the way she was sitting with her arms wrapped around her knees, Ingrid looked more like a young lady than the warrior Claude had come to depend on. 

Brushing aside the bittersweet tugs of his heartstrings, Claude cleared his throat to catch her attention. 

“Not interrupting, I hope?” he said, feeling a small sense of relief when he noticed that she hadn’t been crying.

Ingrid’s hair ribbons gently fanned her face as she shook her head. “Have you come to visit her?” she asked, her mouth stretched into a sweet smile.

Claude took advantage of the excuse and leapt over the paddock. “Yep. May I?” he said, gesturing at the grave. 

“It’s been a whole year, hasn’t it?” Ingrid said when he finished his silent prayer.

Claude took the question as an invitation to sit next to her, as well as a perfect segue to his main purpose of searching for her for a good hour. 

“A little bit more than that, my dear lady. By the by, okay sorry, sorry, I’ll talk normally, don’t hit me!

“Ahem. I just wanted to say...I’m happy that you’re going home.”

Ingrid cracked a rare smirk that made Claude suck in a breath. “Are you saying that you’re glad to be rid of me?”

“Is that supposed to be a joke? I can’t tell when it’s not far from the truth,” Claude replied with a light laugh. It was the furthest thing from the truth but…

Slightly embarrassed by what he was about to say, Claude started to pull out weeds to look busy. “I’m truly happy for you, Ingrid. I’m sure it wasn’t an easy decision for you to leave your territory...or to return after you left. 

“I mean it, despite what I’ve said before.” 

Satisfied that he got the heartfelt words out of the way, Claude turned to face her, only to almost drop the weeds in his hand in shock. 

“Uh… Ingrid? It’s not polite for a noble to stare at someone like that,” he said, hoping the joke would deflect her attention from his suddenly warm face.

“I apologize, Claude. I only wanted to… oh this is silly,” she said, covering her face with her hands.

“Aw, you can’t just stop there. When did you get so good at teasing?” he said, distracted from his own embarrassment.  He wanted to pull her hands down but they weren’t close enough for that. For all her threats, Ingrid has never actually hit him the way she frequently does to Sylvain. 

“Ugh, fine! I might as well,” she said, surprising him into silence. With a loud huff, Ingrid dragged her hands down her face, revealing a cute pout and bright red cheeks. “I wanted to… have one last...l-look at y-you. Be-before I leave,” she said, her facial muscles clearly struggling to not scrunch up in embarrassment.

Rather than feeling smug at that admission, Claude felt a rush of emotions he couldn’t properly parse out. Instinctively, he raised his hand to cover half of his face. 

“H-hey n-now,” he replied, also stuttering. Internally, he winced at his awkwardness, but outwardly, he forced his expression into infuriating smugness, the change as smooth as the way his hand dropped down to press lightly on top of hers.

“It’s only fair that I also memorize your face before you leave me, Miss Galatea.”


End file.
